Cushion for artificial dentures and wax-plasticizer composition therefor



CUSHION FOR ARTIFICIAL DENTURES AND WAX- PLASTICIZER COMPOSITION THEREFOR Julius Hollander and Bernard S. Sabreen, 1 Philadelphia, Pa.

No Drawing. Application April 5, 1957 Serial No. 650,869

9 Claims. (Cl. 32-2) This invention relates to dental cushions'for use with artificial dentures in order to compensate for looseness of fit of the denture, due in the main to gum recession, and constitutes an improvement over the cushion shown and described in our Patent No. 2,664,631.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a dental cushion such as that shown in our Patent No. 2,664,631 in which the fabric is impregnated with a waxplasticizer composition which renders the cushion softer and more pliable and hence more adaptable or conformable to the denture.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dental cushion of the character described which is more adherent to the denture because it is tackier. Yet, it is not so tacky as to prevent separation of the cushions one from another when they are nested in packaged form.

A further object of the invention is to provide a dental cushion of the character described which is not only pliable but which is also unusually resistant to fraying and to crystallization or flaking.

And yet a further object of the invention is to provide a novel wax-plasticizer composition per se which is flakeresistant and pliable at body temperatures and unusually durable, and hence can be applied to fabrics or other fibrous materials for use other than as dental cushions.

The present invention is applicable to dental cushions of any shape now known or which may be designed in the future but especially to the shape and construction as set forth in our Patent No. 2,664,631. Hence special drawings are not deemed necessary for inclusion herein.

The aforementioned objects are obtained by providing a composition comprising a water-insoluble wax having a melting point in excess of body temperature which is combined with a minor amount of a plasticizer that is normally employed in the processing of resins, such for example as vinyl acetate, styrene and methacrylate resins. Among the plasticizers which may be used are glycerine, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, tricresyl phosphate, triphenyl phosphate, dibutyl phthalate, diethyl phthalate, dimethyl phthalate, diphenyl phthalate, orthocresyl paratoluene sulfonate, butyl phthalyl butyl glycollate, ethyl phthalyl ethyl glycollate and methyl phthalyl ethyl glycollate. The latter four compounds are supplied commercially by Monsanto Chemical Company of St. Louis, Missouri, under the trade designations Santicizer 10, B16, E-15 and M-17 respectively.

Any wax having the desired minimum melting point may be employed in the wax-plasticizer composition but we have found that the best wax is a 50-50 mixture of Atlantic Refining Company 131 wax and Cities Service Pacemaker D-30.

Atlantic 131 wax is a low melting, fully refined paraffin wax having the following physical properties:

Oil percent (ASTM D-721) 0.6

Patented Aug. 4, 1959 ice Penetration F. (suggested TAPPI'SCII'IP Muro Method) Taste and odor None Cities Service Pacemaker D-30 is a low melting refined micro'crystalline wax having the following physical properties:

Melting point, F. (AMP) 128-130 Saybolt color, min 28 Tensile, min. 73 F p.s.i 300 Heat stability min. 180 F days 10 Oil content-max. percent 0.25 Car bonizable substance Pass Taste and odor Nil The wax-plasticizer composition may comprise from 0.1 to 20.0% by weight of the plasticizer although percentages below 10 are preferred since above this figure the composition is softer. The composition having optimum properties for use with dental cushions constitutes a 50- 50 mixture of Atlantic 131 wax and Cities Service Pacemaker D-30 wax admixed with 3.65% by weight of butyl phthalyl butyl glycollate (Santicizer B-16).

Various methods of applying the wax-plasticizer composition to a relatively thin piece of cloth may be em ployed. Preferably, the wax is melted and the required amount of plasticizer added thereto without a solvent since the plasticizer and Wax are miscible. The cloth, such as flannel, is dipped in the composition and conveyed while hot between plates which remove the excess to the desired coating thickness. The coated cloth is then air cooled until the composition hardens. The excess composition may be manually removed by rolling the cloth while it is impregnated with the hot composition. The impregnated cloth is then stamped, cut or otherwise formed into U -Shaped upper and lower denture cushions as illustrated in our Patent No. 2,664,631. The cushions are then nested and packaged for storage and shipment.

The resultant cushion is readily conformable to the gums and denture because it is soft and pliable. It also has good adherence because it is slightly tacky. At the same time the cushion is exceptionally durable because of its unusual resistance to fraying and flaking. Attention is called to the fact that while the cushions are sufiiciently tacky to adhere to the dentures, they are not so tacky as to adhere one to another during nesting.

We claim:

1. A cushion for an artificial denture consisting of a relatively thin layer of cloth of substantially U-shape impregnated with a composition comprised of a water-insoluble wax which does not melt at body temperature and a plasticizer.

2. A cushion for an artificial denture consisting of a relatively thin layer of cloth of substantially U-shape impregnated with a composition comprised of a water-insoluble wax which does not melt at body temperature and a plasticizer selected from the class consisting of glycerine, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, tricresyl phosphate, triphenyl phosphate, dibutyl phthalate, diethyl phthalate, dimethyl phthalate, diphenyl phthalate, ortho-cresyl paratoluene sulfonate, butyl phthalyl butyl glycollate, ethyl phthalyl ethyl glycollate and methyl phthalyl ethyl glycollate.

3. The cushion of claim 2 wherein the wax-plasticizer composition comprises 0.1 to 20.0 percent by weight of plasticizer.

4. A cushion for an artificial denture consisting of a relatively thin layer of cloth of substantially U-shape impregnated with a composition comprised of a 'water-insoluble wax which does not melt at body temperature and butyl phthalyl butyl glycollate.

5. A cushion for an artificial denture consisting of a relatively thin layer of cloth of substantially U-shape impregnated with a composition comprised of a Water-insoluble wax which does not melt at body temperature and dibutyl phthalate. 1 a 1 6. A substantially solid, pliable wax composition consisting of as the major componenta paraflin Wax and as the minor component a plasticizer.

- 7. A substantially solid, pliable wax composition consisting of as the major component a paraflin wax and as the minor component a plasticizer selected from the class consisting of glycerine, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, tricresyl phosphate, triphenyl phosphate, dibutyl phthalate, diethyl phthalate, dimethyl phthalate, diphenyl' phthalate, ortho-cresyl para-toluene sulfonate, butyl phthalyl butyl glycollate, ethyl phthalyl ethylv glycollate and methyl phthalyl ethyl glycollate. l

8. A substantially solid, pliable wax composition consisting of from- 80.0 to 99.9 percent by weight of a paraflin Wax and from 0.1 to 20.0 percent by weight of butyl phthalyl butyl glycollate.

9. A substantially solid, pliable wax composition consisting of from 80.0 to 99.9 percent by weight of a paraffin wax and from 0.1 to 20.0 percent by weight of dibutyl phthalate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,139,679 Hochstettler May 18, 1915 1,974,854 Schrauth Sept. 25, 1934 2,188,796 Richards Jan. 30, 1940 2,392,513 Town Jan. 8, 1946 OTHER REFERENCES Manufacturing Chemist, June 1954, pages 242-246. (Copy of article in Div. 56.) 

1. A CUSHION FOR AN ARTIFICIAL DENTURE CONSISTING OF A RELATIVELY THIN LAYER OF CLOTH OF SUBSTANTIALLY U-SHAPE IMPREGNATED WITH A COMPOSITION COMPRISED OF A WATER-INSOLUBLE WAX WHICH DOES NOT MELT AT BODY TEMPERATURE AND A PLASTICIZER. 